


What The Blind Man Sees

by Crumbles_Of_Reality



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: AU, Angst, Cute, Fluff, Fluffy, GOSH, Headcanon, I give up, M/M, Merthur - Freeform, Ok bye, Rushed, Torture, arthur only married for a queen, badly written aghhhh, blind Merlin, blind merlin headcanon, i hate honors, i wish gwaine and percy were a thing dont you, im in spanish class, leon is lonely, lol, merlin gets kidnapped, merlin is best friends with gwaine, merlin is blind, not for love, shit i was just called on, what are these tags, whoops
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-02
Updated: 2016-02-02
Packaged: 2018-05-17 21:15:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,061
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5885485
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Crumbles_Of_Reality/pseuds/Crumbles_Of_Reality
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Arthur really never would’ve guessed it. Merlin had fought fairly well with a mace, and walked with ease and no fear of tripping. When he did trip, Arthur had assumed it was just Merlin being clumsy, or that he just didn’t see the small rock or stone. He had saved Arthur’s life with incredible speed and stealth, and perfect coordination. After becoming his manservant, Merlin had worked dutifully while jesting for weeks. It was only when Merlin asked, “Arthur, what do you look like?” that he realized.</p>
<p>Merlin was blind.</p>
            </blockquote>





	What The Blind Man Sees

**Author's Note:**

> SUDDEN HEADCANON CAME TO ME IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT

Arthur really never would’ve guessed it. Merlin had fought fairly well with a mace, and walked with ease and no fear of tripping. When he did trip, Arthur had assumed it was just Merlin being clumsy, or that he just didn’t see the small rock or stone. He had saved Arthur’s life with incredible speed and stealth, and perfect coordination. After becoming his manservant, Merlin had worked dutifully while jesting for weeks. It was only when Merlin asked, “Arthur, what do you look like?” that he realized.

Merlin was blind. 

He took it calmly. That didn’t mean he wasn’t surprised (he was), but he answered Merlin.

“I have blonde hair, and a straight jawline, and I suppose I’m sort of muscular, but that comes with training. I am as tall as you, and some people say I have the bluest eyes they’ve ever seen.” He spoke quietly, fearfully, as if any little thing might upset Merlin. He wasn’t sure why he felt that way, but perhaps it was because of the terribly sad look of anguish on Merlin’s face. When he finally turned to Arthur, he had tears in his sightless eyes. 

“Arthur, what is the color blue?” He whispered, quietly so his voice didn’t crack. Arthur’s heart twinged with sorrow, and frayed a little around the edges. He managed to put on a small smile -though no one could see it- and pull Merlin into a hug. Merlin sniffled and rubbed his eyes, attempting not to let his emotions show. 

“Well, Merlin, blue is many things… 

Blue is the color of the ocean when you take your loved one there, blue is the color of the edges of the sky when the sun sets and they press their shoulder against yours in the sand. Blue is the color of the flower you give them out of adoration, and blue is the color you feel when you see them crying. Blue is the river you bring them to, and blue is the fish you catch while they stand and watch, smiling. Blue is shining and blue is memories and blue is sorrow. Blue are your eyes, Merlin. Your eyes are the brightest blue I’ve ever seen, and they shine and they cry and they smile of their own accord, because blue, Merlin, blue is beautiful.” 

Merlin was sat in awe at the foot of Arthur’s bed, his mouth hanging open and his eyes sparkling wistfully. But after realizing his position he hastily nodded to Arthur, ‘Sire’, and left the room. Arthur smiled to himself, but was sad knowing the manservant still felt different and uncomfortable around Arthur. 

The next day, when Merlin accompanied them on a hunt, Arthur was careful to describe everything to him. Eventually some of the other knights caught on, and spoke to Merlin with vigor in describing the trees and flowers. Leon would gaze into a far off land, speaking of the places he’d seen, (that probably weren’t special to others _with_ sight), but made Merlin smile so brightly at being accepted the other knights couldn’t help but smile back. 

Gwaine also told Merlin of the places he’d seen, the rowdy pubs and the cruel dungeons. Lance shared his tales of fighting and duels, and Elyan told of the fires of the blacksmith’s forge, and the shining and gleaming swords he had carved from molten metal. Percival told of the beasts he had smitten, and the many caves he had walked through to come to this land. Together the nights told their tales of glory and gore, their victories and failures became Merlin’s and everyone else’s, and the knights and their King became so tightly wound that they found as a group, they were unstoppable. 

But it seemed that no one fought as hard when Merlin wasn’t there. No one cheered at the victories as loudly as Merlin, no one smiled as brightly as him, or spoke as humbly. It seemed as if, without Merlin, the knights were easy to fight, (well, not _easy_ , but certainly defeatable if you tried hard enough) and had not as much passion in the fight. So of course, they always took the blindly following -and persistent- Merlin along with them, to their annoyance (they didn’t want him to get hurt, but Merlin was not hearing of it). 

Though, with all of this action, everyone got hurt. And considering Merlin was blind, it was bound to give him a slight disadvantage in battle, ignoring how scrawny he already was. It would only make sense for something to go wrong one day… but Arthur just couldn’t imagine it. Neither could any of the knights, after years of going on quests as a group. 

So of course, in this battle, something bad happened. Arthur didn’t even realize it at first. Merlin had been told -as usual- to stay out of the way, and he usually climbed a tree -how, Arthur never knew- but it seemed this time there were no sturdy trees to climb. Arthur had just assumed Merlin was safe and out of the way. It was only when the battle was over and the bandits had fled that he realized what had happened. He frantically searched for Merlin, not finding him among the slain, but not among the living either. 

Merlin had been kidnapped. 

Immediately his face fell, the victory was meaningless. Without Merlin nothing would be the same, their group would not be complete. Gwaine came trotting up on his horse, smiling after talking to Percy. 

“Where’s Merlin? Getting water, or…” He trailed off, noticing Arthur’s distraught features. 

“No…. no. No! Merlin! MERLIN!” Gwaine yelled, and pulled his horse gently in the direction of the bandits. His eyes were ablaze with anger, and before Arthur could order him to calm down and think rationally, Gwaine was galloping after his best friend. 

The other knights stared after him, wondering what the commotion was. Arthur feebly stood up, walking to his men. 

“Merlin’s been kidnapped… by the bandits.. Gwaine raced off as usual, the idiot.” He choked out. The joke hung limply in the air, lacking the humor it so desperately needed. They looked grim, and together they set out plans. In an hour, in would be dusk. On any other hunt or mission, this may have been a problem, but the knights concluded that if they each carried a torch and rode slowly, they would make good progress to where the bandits had been heading. They could only hope Merlin was ok, and that Gwaine hadn’t gotten himself killed. Lancelot seemed particularily uneasy, saying that,   
“Merlin will be fine, he always has been. He has his ways…” But Arthur and the other knights stared at him incredulously. 

In minutes, they set off, racing as fast as they could for the horizon, following the tracks of Gwaine and the bandits. They needed to get as far as possible as fast as possible, before the sun sank too low and darkness fell upon them. 

Before the night drifted into place fully, the knights drew their torches. Flames made the horses skittish, they knew, so they were forced to travel slower. Every second was anguish to Arthur, knowing that Merlin could be tortured or killed at any moment. 

After many hours of traveling in the dark, Percival declared that they would not be able to fight if they were all exhausted. The men agreed reluctantly, and soon they were all slumped against trees, drifting to times when they were all at feasts, gallantly celebrating. Arthur, too, was dreaming of these things, but one memory stuck out in his mind, one that surprised him even in sleep: Merlin was never seated at the table, but always uncomfortably standing next to Arthur. It shocked him how out of place he looked; no proper attire had been given to him, no food had been served to him. Seeing Merlin with that small look of longing on his face, alert and listening, made Arthur want to yell. It was as if he wanted to see what he was hearing, but then again, he wouldn’t? 

Arthur woke up at sunrise, angry at himself for sleeping so long. Even so, he staggered standing up, and barely had enough strength to rise himself up onto his horse. It was just morning weakness, and he called his men together. Once more, they planned a route and followed tracks, and once more, they were left with no Merlin. 

Weeks passed, and Arthur, upon day three of the first week, had sent back Elyan to give Gwen the royal seal; he had crowned her Queen of Camelot only months before, and although he did not love her, he trusted her more than anyone- well, any apart from Merlin. 

On the fifth week, 3rd day, they came across the bandit’s camp. Well, it was more of a small castle than a camp. It looked sturdily built in stone, towering high, and Arthur shuddered, knowing suddenly there would be dungeons. They made battle plans and stormed the castle, glad to find that there were not many men to fight. 

It seemed that even after all the men were killed, they could not find Merlin. Arthur sat pensively in the courtyard, tears threatening his trained eyes like water at a dam. He heard a feeble whimper from beside him, and looked down to see the grates of a dungeon wall. He gasped and ran into the main palace, scouring the area for the entrance to the dungeons, all the while hollering Merlin’s name. The other knights had gone on patrol of the area for food, and eventually Arthur found the dungeons in the unfamiliar castle. 

“Ar- arthur.” Merlin sighed, hearing the footsteps approach. He was racked with coughs, heaving and pressing his arm to his mouth to cover the outburst. When he pulled away his arm, the sleeve was stained scarlet with blood. 

“Merlin…. oh, Merlin, what did they do to you?” Arthur cried, running to the dungeon door that looked unlocked. To his surprise, it actually was. He pulled it open, guessing that in a hurry to get away, a guard had left him to “die” instead of taking him with. Merlin shook all over, and flinched when Arthur put a hand on his shoulder. Deciding that Merlin seemed too shaky to walk, he heaved Merlin over his shoulder and began walking. Merlin squeaked in surprise and coughed again, more blood appearing on his sleeve. 

He heard a ruckus in the courtyard above, then heard Gwaine begin hollering. Merlin heaved a chuckle through his tired lips, then fell limp against Arthur. When Arthur checked, he saw that Merlin had fallen unconscious, blood still dripping from his lips. 

He carried him out to the courtyard, his arms no more tired than they had been originally. This worried him, for Merlin seemed almost weightless in his grip. They must have denied him food, or given him so little that he starved. 

Gwaine saw them first, and began running to Merlin worriedly. 

“Merlin! Merlin? Arthur, is he ok? Merlin?” Gwaine took Merlin from Arthur’s arms, and Arthur reluctantly let him. Gwaine looked so distraught while checking over Merlin Arthur couldn’t help but walk to help him. 

“He’s been starved, he’s, he’s, look at his ribs! Look at them!” Gwaine yelled, on the edge of hysterics. Arthur heard hooves pattering on the drawbridge, and soon the other knights were upon them. They chattered and worried about his condition, but soon Leon yelled for silence. 

“Everyone, I think Merlin’s just passed out. You don’t need to worry as of yet. He seems to be coughing up blood, but that might just be because of lack of food and immune system.” He spoke, catching all knight’s attention instantly. He began ordering Percival and Lancelot to get food and water, and to collect wood and make a fire. 

When Merlin woke up, everyone was waiting for him. Gwaine, ever the best friend, noticed first, and began spooning broth into his mouth. Merlin coughed and spluttered at first, but then sipped it eagerly, grasping for more whenever the spoon moved away. 

Eventually Merlin said he felt strong enough to tell what had happened to him, and quickly covered all “important details” as he said. 

Arthur felt terrible. Merlin had been tortured for the first few weeks, but then they had given up when he refused to tell them anything. Eventually they turned to starving him, and by then Merlin was too sick to even speak. Well, not ill sick, but still in major pain from the whippings and torturings. Gwaine was gritting his teeth, and decided he was going to check if anyone in the castle was alive, “so he could pound their eyes through their mouth and make them wish they had never touched him”. Arthur strongly disagreed, telling him he’d only get in more trouble, and that they needed to help Merlin. 

After a few days, Arthur decided it would be best if Merlin stood and tried to walk. It seemed he was healthy enough, and he had been eating well since they had first found him. 

“I- I can’t, please, I can’t. Just leave me, I can’t.” Merlin said, but Arthur hoisted him up nonetheless and told him to walk to Gwaine, who had agreed to this. He spoke consistently about 20 feet away, making sure Merlin could hear him. Arthur expected Merlin to walk as normally as usual, after all, it seemed like he could see all the time, so he thought it was going to be the same. But Merlin clicked his tongue once, stood for a few seconds, then raised his hands and walked forward. He immediately slipped on a root, and fell, landing jarringly on his arms. He whimpered, and immediately Arthur knew Merlin had lost something more in the tortures than he had cared to share. 

“Merlin. What did they do to you?” Arthur asked, his voice low and dangerously dark. Merlin turned to his voice, and for once, his eyes looked clouded and unseeing, actually showing he was blind. 

“N-nothing.” He spoke, then heaved himself up shakily. Arthur grabbed his wrist and asked him again. Merlin tried to pull away to no avail, and eventually sighed and collapsed to the ground.

“I had a form of… er, seeing, before. It wasn’t actual sight, but if I made noise it would bounce off something -if the object was there- and show me an outline of it. It was comforting, and helped me see… but- but now it’s gone, I don’t know what they did, they took it away.” He choked, tears spilling down his cheeks. Arthur looked at him skeptically, then realized what he meant. 

“How do you get it back?” He asked uncertainly. Merlin shook his head, but spoke quietly. 

“I- Well, there isn’t any good way to get it back, not according to you.” He whimpered. Arthur snapped to attention. So there _was_ a way to help him? 

“Screw what I say, what is it?” Arthur pressed, deciding the consequences would be worth it. 

“Well…. shflhic.” Merlin mumbled. 

“What? Speak up.” 

“Magic!” Merlin spoke up, doing as Arthur asked. Arthur stood where he was, dumbstruck by the word he had grown to hate so very much. 

“..... magic? Well, I suppose… where do we find the sorcerer to do such a thing?” Arthur asked. The knights were all there now, -apart from Elyan, who was still at Camelot after giving Gwen the seal- and Lance was looking fretfully between Merlin. Merlin suddenly broke down into sobs, and Arthur rushed to console him, as did Gwaine. 

Lance stood back, looking fearful, and Leon had absolutely no idea what to do, so he hung back with Percival. 

“Merlin, what’s wrong? Is there no one who can do it? Damn it, Merlin, tell me!” Gwaine pleaded, and Merlin turned to him, out of the other knight’s line of sight, and did something (Arthur only knew he did something because Gwaine gasped and stood back). 

Merlin wailed, and then turned to the other knights. 

“See? He knows, now, Lance does too! They hate me!” He screamed, his arms flailing limply. Lance shook his head, beginning to protest.

“Merlin, I don’t hate you, you’re the bravest man I -” 

“LANCELOT AND GWAINE.” Arthur yelled. They looked to him, fear fleeting across their eyes at their King’s obvious anger. 

“WHAT DO YOU KNOW? What is Merlin so worried about?” He calmed. They looked at eachother, then Merlin screamed. 

“DON’T YOU DARE TELL HIM. DON’T YOU DARE!” He curled into a ball, then shakily stood up. He was still visibly blind, and was shaking when he turned towards Arthur’s voice. His tears were dried, and Arthur raised his gaze to Merlin’s unseeing one. Merlin’s teeth were gritted, and he finally relaxed. 

Arthur noticed that wind and leaves had started swirling around Merlin, and they began to encase him. Arthur let out a strangled cry as Merlin was enveloped in the leaves. It seemed his friend was gone. Sorrow didn’t begin to describe the feeling in his chest. 

But then he was flung back by some invisible force, and when he opened his eyes he saw Merlin standing there, shell shocked. 

“Uhm… that wasn’t supposed to happen.” He said, with his eyes still closed. Arthur wondered why he had his eyes screwed shut so tightly, then Arthur realized something. 

“Merlin, open your eyes.” He said quietly. 

“What? They are open, the-” His eyes popped open and he shrieked, eyes falling immediately on Arthur. He twirled in a circle slowly, a look of pure joy on his face. The knights looked at him incredulously, then realized what had happened. They all began grinning, looking at how amazed Merlin looked. He stopped after turning fully, eyes coming again to Arthur. Arthur stood up and walked to Merlin and pulled him into a tight hug, then held the skinny man in front of him and pulled him forward once more, this time connecting their lips. Arthur had his eyes open, and so did Merlin, who still seemed amazed by his sight (who could blame him, really). A knight -Arthur wasn’t sure which one, but he was going to kill him when he found out- hooted, and Arthur pulled away. 

“Arthur..” Merlin said breathlessly, still gazing into his eyes. Arthur looked at him, suddenly shy.

“Arthur… I see blue.” 

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed!


End file.
